


My Lovers Keeper

by brunettachoppa687, TTICSY (phantomofthefandoms)



Series: The Things I Could Show You [3]
Category: Danny Phantom
Genre: Angry Danny, Depression, M/M, Sad Danny, Spectra needs a warning all her own, name calling and shaming, this is not happy for a good bit
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-26
Updated: 2015-03-26
Packaged: 2018-03-19 18:55:40
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,364
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3620610
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/brunettachoppa687/pseuds/brunettachoppa687, https://archiveofourown.org/users/phantomofthefandoms/pseuds/TTICSY
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Danny has a lot on his plate; school, ghost fighting, friends, family, his crush on Vlad and average teenage life...  Dr. Spectra, does NOT make anything any better...</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> For those who know this episode, you kinda know what to expect. If you haven't seen "My Brothers Keeper" then I'll try to give you fair warning. There is talk of depression and some dark thoughts on Danny's part, but no suicide or the like thank goodness. I don't think there is anything triggering in the story, but hopefully I have given you all enough warning.

~*~

Danny sighed, annoyed.  "I can't believe Jazz managed to convince Mr. Lancer to make me talk to this Spectra woman..."

Tucker sipped on his soda, shrugging.  "Hey, it's better than detention, right?"

Danny nodded, smiling slightly.  "Oh totally!  Still, what do they expect me to talk about?  I'm not depressed or anything, and the mess was an accident!  I mean, that ghost--"

"THEY don't know about the ghost Danny."  Sam commented, munching on her salad.  "Just, play along for now.”  
  
The goth shrugged.  “It can't be that bad.  It's just talking."

Danny nodded, frowning slightly.  "Yeah, I guess you're right.  Well, I better go now or I'll be late.  See you guys after school!"

Danny left the cafeteria and quickly went to the new guidance counselor's office.  He gave a polite knock on the door before entering.  "Miss Spectra?  I'm Danny Fenton, I’m here for my appointment?..."

Danny frowned, shivering suddenly.  //Wow... It's really cold in here.  I can almost see my own breath!//

He rubbed at his arms as he walked over to the chair, looking towards the woman at the desk.  "Gosh, why is it so cold in here?"

Doctor Spectra was a lean, icily beautiful woman with tan skin, gelled red hair, and bright, catlike green eyes behind black-framed glasses, dressed all in red.  She sat reclined behind her desk with an easy grace -- like her body language was meant to be soothing, but for some reason it just set Danny on edge.  

"I find that icy temperatures keep the mind ICY sharp~!" Spectra enthused, peppily pointing at the black-haired youth before her.  "Please, sit down~!"

Danny slowly sat down, suspicious gaze never leaving the strange woman.  "Uh... Ok."

Danny rubbed the back of his head, slightly embarrassed.  "Listen, sorry you got dragged into this.  I don't think there is really anything for us to talk about.  I mean, I'm not upset or down about anything.  I'm actually really happy, for the most part!"

He shrugs.  "I just don't think there's much for us to talk about..."

"Oh?  Are you sure, honey?" Spectra asked, brows raised.  "No unrequited crushes you want to talk about~?  YOU seem like a boy who would have a CRUSH~”

She giggled happily.  “And you KNOW you can talk to me about ANYTHING, you know~!” she exclaimed.  “Counselor-patient confidentiality aside, I think TRUST is a big thing with telling one another about the little demons~"

Danny froze, eyes wide.  What, how could she--?

//Oh, right, normal teenagers have crushes too, mines just... A little… Less normal...//

Danny looked around, flustered.  "I... I don't know...  I mean, yeah, I DO have a crush on someone but--"

"Ohhhhh, I knew it~!" Spectra cooed, smiling excitedly.  "A face like yours is just bursting with unrequited love~!  Is it someone older~?  Or younger?  Boy or girl~?"

Danny was starting to feel uncomfortable.  A large part of him really wanted to leave, but he felt... COMPELLED to answer.  He blinked, slightly dazed.

"I... Yeah, it's... It's a guy.  Older..."

Danny frowned, shaking his head slightly.  //Why did I say that?//

Spectra's expression changed.  "Ooooooo, baby Danny, how much older?" she asked, pressing a hand to her chest.  She looked honestly concerned.

"I... I don't think that's--"

Again, some weird compulsion came over him.  His eyelids got a little heavy and he sunk into his seat a bit.  He felt... Tired, drained.  His mouth opened without his permission.

"A-around twenty years..."

"Oh no..."

Internally, Spectra smirked -- and covered it on the outside with a sad look.  "Danny... I wouldn't say this if I didn't care about you, but... he's probably using you..." she murmured.  "Men only want one thing, baby boy, and it certainly isn't the love someone so naïve can give them."

Danny visibly flinched.  Vlad?  Using him?  He shook his head, some logic coming back to him, but expression a little saddened now.

"No…  No it's not like that.  He's an old family friend, my tutor.  We just got really close lately and he's…  He's a good friend.  He doesn't..."

Danny slumped further, eyes lowered.  "He doesn't see me like that.  He doesn't know how I feel, and I never really intended to tell him...  I mean, if he knew..."

Danny looked up at Spectra, eyes slightly glazed.  "He wouldn't accept it, would he?  It would change... Everything..."

Spectra got up from her desk.  "Danny, I think you're a GREAT kid!" she enthused, circling around to touch the boy's shoulders.  "But if you ever said how you really felt to this man, he'd call you immature. Naïve.  Maybe even 'stupid'... a little loser fumbling for help in an ocean he doesn't know how to swim in..."

All at once, she squeezed his shoulders and smiled.  "But you're a great kid, Danny~ And it may be a bit of a mess now, but MESS is just the beginning of MESSAGE~!" Spectra enthused, crouching down to give Danny a happy smile.  

She pointed at the door. "Now, go out there and be a better you~!"

Danny frowned, eyes cast to the floor as he slowly stumbled out of the office.  His friends were there to meet him in the hall.

"Hey Danny, how'd it go?"  Sam asked.  Danny frowned harder, face seeming a touch pale.  "I... I don't feel so good.  Listen, I know I'm asking a big favor here, but could you guys tell Jazz to let Vlad know I can't make it to train--Uh, I mean tutoring tonight?  I'm just a bit... Under the weather..."

Tucker shared a look with Sam.  "Are you sure?  Earlier you were talking about how excited you were for tonight's training...  Something about a ‘field trip’?"

Danny slightly perked up a bit at that, before he winced and stifled his feelings.  "N-no...  Not tonight.  I gotta go..."

Danny walked away, sluggish and miserable.  

Sam frowned.  "Something's not right...  Let's go tell Vlad ourselves."

"Tell Vlad what?"

Sam and Tucker whirled around to see Jazz there, holding her book and looking at the curiously.   "Uh, Danny's not feeling good so we were just gonna be good friends and let his tutor Vlad know he wasn't coming!”  Tucker flailed. “Right, Sam?"

"Uh, right!  Well, gotta go!"

They both ran off, leaving a confused Jazz behind.  Her gaze turned towards her brothers retreating back across the school lawn.  "Danny's not feeling well?..."

~*~*~

Later that evening, a soft knock sounded on Danny's door.  "Hey, little bro, you in there?" Jazz asked.

When she didn't receive a response, the redhead opened the door -- holding a reheated plate of dinner in her hand.  "I brought you some meat loaf," she said.  "Mom didn't mix it up with anything ghosty this time, so it's pretty good..."

Danny looked up, slightly surprised.  "Oh!  Um, thanks.  I didn't realize I missed dinner..."

He stood up from his bed and came to meet her at the door, taking the plate of food.  He turned and put it on his desk, letting her in.

Jazz walked around the piles of clothes on the floor -- but for once, didn't comment on it as she sat on his bed.  "...Vlad called earlier," she said cautiously, testing the waters.  "He sounded concerned about you."

Danny sighed, looking sad.  "Yeah...  I um... I just didn't feel up to going over there tonight.  I'll be fine by tomorrow, no worries.  I just... I gotta lot of heavy stuff on my plate at the moment..."

Danny looked over at some of the photos on his poster board, some of his friends and family, and some more recent ones of Vlad.  He smiled at them a bit, before his expression turned sad again.  He sighed, slumping down onto the bed.  "Sorry, Jazz, guess I'm just having a bad day..."

Jazz patted his shoulder.  "Danny... I'm worried about you, too," she confessed.  "There was that point over a month ago when you perked up, but ever since the accident you've been acting strange... You've been depressed and moody, and I want to know what I can do to help you!"

Danny blinked, surprised that Jazz had noticed so much.  "I...  I didn't know anyone had noticed..."

Danny sighed, shrugging.  He smiled a bit, some of the gloom from earlier that day having begun to fade from his sisters concern.  "Don't worry about me Jazz, I'm fine!  I just had a down day, that's all!  I'll be better tomorrow, you'll see!"

 


	2. Chapter Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning, Spectra is a bitch and Vlad is pissed.

"I feel like crap..."

Danny sat hunched over in the chair in Spectras office, feeling more down and depressed then even the day before.  All these emotions running through his mind, and all his feelings!

He felt like crying...

"I didn't know unrequited love could hurt so bad..."

"The heart is a powerful thing, Danny," Spectra cooed, her concerned tone hiding the excited malice.  The kid had COME BACK.  Of his OWN ACCORD.  "And I feel sorry for you, but it sounds like you've really given your heart to your tutor.  Have you seen him since our last session?"

Danny shook his head, frowning.  "I... No, I haven't.  I mean, I was supposed to go over last night but...  I kinda wanted some space, to think..."

He sighed, hands coming up to cup his chin.  His eyes were glazed over once more under her influence, and he was talking a bit more freely than the day before.  "I guess I just never thought past my own feelings...  And I should have.  He's older, rich, good looking..."

The boy’s head slumped forward more, going a little pale.  "What could he possibly want with a kid like me...?"

Spectra glanced at the floor, like she was thinking.  "To be honest, I'm not sure I should say it, Danny..."

"S-say what?"  Danny asked, blinking hazy eyes up at her.

The redhead sighed, feigning regret, and looked up at him.

"Do you know what a 'kept boy' is?" she asked quietly.

Danny frowned, confused.  "I... It's sounds familiar but... No, not really..."

Spectra got up to sit on her desk, spine erect and chest held proudly -- her eyes pitying, but her body language victorious over the boy.  

"A 'kept boy' is a young man, usually very pretty -- and blue eyes and black hair like yours are gorgeous, Danny, have you seen yourself in the mirror? -- who is owned by a much older man, or a 'master,'" she informed him in a soft tone.  "They live together, eat together, sleep together... like family, except for one big difference.  The 'master' gives his kept boy lots of things... money, presents, maybe even EDUCATION... but he expects something in return..."

Danny frowned, looking away.  That... That didn't really sound like Vlad...  Sure, he was nice to Danny, gave him things.  But he was always genuine about it!  He never seemed to want anything in return--!

//"Just listen to me, and give me your time~"//

Danny blinked, frowning.  His time?  Was Vlad so lonely, he would use Danny to keep himself entertained?  He shook his head, different sides at war with each other.  No... No, that wasn't right, that was...  That was twisting everything out of proportion!  

Danny suddenly shivered, feeling so terribly cold.  His eyes faded to a dull blue, filled with sadness and pain.  

He had come to a very...  very depressing thought.

"It doesn't matter...  It doesn't matter if he keeps me around for... for whatever reason...  He won't ever feel like I do, he won't ever return my love...  But I don't think I can just... separate myself from him..."

He looked up at Spectra, a pale, weak looking boy on the verge of tears.  "I'm already in too deep..."

Spectra covered her mouth in mock shock.  "Baby boy, no... you can't say that!  You'd be calling yourself a WHORE!" She half-crooned.

That name rattled around in his brain until it stuck, until it felt like a part of him.  He sighed sadly, a tear slipping down his cheek.  He wiped it away, shoulders hunched.  "For his attention? Acceptance?  I guess...  I guess I am..."

Slowly he stood, legs barely able to carry his weight.  "Do... Do you think you could write me a sick note?  I don't... I don't feel so good and... I kinda just want to go crawl in bed... For a week..."

"Sure, sure, baby..." Spectra cooed, reaching over... and giving him a hug.

The contact was cold, judgmental -- and as Danny lay in her grasp, she squeezed him lightly.  Light only visible to her trickled up from the boy and into her skin, and by the time he had walked out her door, note in hand... all Spectra's wrinkles vanished like they had been wiped away with a warm washcloth.  She popped open her compact, watching them go.  "Mmmm, teen misery is the nectar that keeps ME looking fabulous~" Spectra murmured to her beloved reflection.  "And that Fenton kid is like a walking SPA TREATMENT~!"

~*~*~

Danny had just given the note to Lancer and was slowly making his way out of school, bag over his shoulder.  To anyone looking, he was deathly pale and even thin looking, usually bright blue eyes now terribly dull.  His shoulders were slumped and he looked like he was trying to curl into himself, tears threatening to spill at any moment.

He left the school and walked across the front lawn, ready to head home -- but suddenly stopped when a sleek black car pulled to a stop in front of him.  Danny took a frightened step back when someone very familiar stepped out of the car.

"V-Vlad?” the boy balked.  “Wh-what are you doing h-here?"

Vlad stepped forward.  "Jasmine called me, saying you left school early and you looked terrible," he told him, taking his hand and leading him towards the car.  "Come on, we're going to my place.  Don't worry, your sister will tell your parents."

Danny found he had no energy to fight.  He was just so... so tired and miserable...  and even with all these feelings running through his brain, all these theories about WHY Vlad put up with him or kept him around, he found that all he could think about, was how desperately he wanted Vlad to hold him...

"I just...  I just want to sleep..."

//Yes, sleep.  Let me sleep this all away, no one can hurt me in my dreams...  Let me sleep...//

They settled into the back of the car, Vlad laying Danny's head gently against his shoulder as the chauffeur drove them back to Amity Villas.  Leaving the boy's backpack in the car, he picked Danny up -- carrying him upstairs to one of the bedrooms.  

//My poor little badger, LOOK at you...// Vlad thought, heart stinging at he looked down at the pretty, dark-haired boy who looked so miserable and sick, even in sleep.  //What’s happening to you...?//

*~*~*~*~*

The next morning, after some restless sleep, Danny woke up with a start.  He was panting heavily, cold sweat running down as his spine.  He looked around wildly, eyes wide in horror as he realized where he was.

Vlad's manor.

//WHORE~//  

A voice, eerily like Spectras, echoed in his mind.  //Look at you, you attention whore, even in this state you crawl back to him!//

Danny flailed out of bed, heart pounding and limbs shaking.  He needed to leave, needed to leave now!  He felt like his head and his heart were going to explode.  He was so pale, so weak...

//Weak little boy, foolish little whore~!//

He looked outside, seeing the early morning sun through his window.  School.  He needed to go to school, needed to get away...

//Go talk to Spectra, she understands...  She'll listen to the poor little whore...//

Danny pulled on his shoes and ran down the stairs with whatever strength and speed his body had left…!

Vlad had heard Danny get up, and suddenly collapse into a whirlwind of activity.  He dashed out of the kitchen, catching the younger halfa just as he hit the bottom of the stairs.  He grabbed Danny’s arm, clotheslining him to a stop; taken by surprise, Vlad was jerked forward a step, eyes wide.

"Daniel!" the older man exclaimed, his eyes worried.  "Calm down, what's wrong?!  What's going on?"

Danny flinched back out of Vlad's hands, skin burning where he had been touched.  He looked up at Vlad with dull, blue eyes, filled with panic.  "N-no, let go!"

He stumbled back, holding his arm like he had been wounded.  He looked around desperately for an escape.  He had to leave.  He couldn’t stay any longer, Vlad might find out!  He can't ever find out!

//Run little whore.  RUN~!//

"I-I have to go!  I have to go now!"

Paired with the crippling worry he felt for his little badger, Vlad felt a rush of desperation; a feeling like if he let Danny go he'd never see him again.  The older, larger halfa grabbed the younger's arm again -- a little harder than he really should have -- and yanked him back.  

"No, you have to tell me what's wrong!" Vlad yelled, eyes bright with anxiety.  "Daniel, I can’t help you unless you tell me!  Something's happened to you, and -!"

"Let me GO!"

Danny pushed Vlad back with all his strength, which wasn't really much to begin with.  Vlad mainly let him go out of shock from the near violent act.  Danny looked down at his own hands as if they had betrayed him.  His eyes filled with tears, ready to fall.

He attacked Vlad!  He'd pushed him away!  He--!

//Worthless whore, you can't do anything right, CAN you~?//

Danny released a dry sob.  "I'm sorry... I'm sorry!"

He turned intangible and fled, flying towards the school at a dangerous speed for his body’s condition.

Vlad stared after him, eyes wide with shock.  Daniel had... no, this wasn't right.  It wasn't natural.  In that brief moment, when the boy had pushed him back, he had smelled something -- the influence of another ghost.  Something he recognized.  SomeONE.

Vlad transformed, went intangible, and streaked after Danny -- anger and hurt building as he went.  Only SHE would dare fill a child with such harmful LIES!!  He'd tear her APART!


	3. Chapter Three

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, we REALLY hate Spectra

"What have you done to me?!"

Danny stood in Spectra’s office, glaring at her as best he could in his state.  He had turned human when he landed at the school, avoided Jazz's concerned calls, and ran straight to the offices.  The door slammed shut behind him as he yelled at her, leaning against the desk to try and stay up right.

"You... What have you DONE to me?!"‏ Danny was shaking like a leaf, ready to fall over at any minute.  "This isn't me...  This isn't... You!  You've done something, I KNOW IT!!"

Spectra smoothed her hair, barely glancing up at Danny from her reflection.  "Awwww, come on, Danny~" she crooned.  "You're being rude to your counselor~!"

Her compact snapped shut.  Click!

Her wicked green eyes flicked up to his pathetic figure.  "But since I'm almost done with this school, I suppose I can tell you about it..." Spectra smirked.  "You see, the misery of youthful people like yourself keeps ME young, see?  And there you were, bouncy, happy little ghost boy at the height of his happiness~"

She grinned, touching his cheek to taste the lovely misery rolling off of him.  "And here YOU are, dragged to the bottom and thinking you can challenge me~"

"You--!"

Danny transformed, toxic green eyes aflame with rage.  He reared back and tried to blast her, only for her to dodge easily.  "You feed off of misery?!  Is that it?!  Going around and finding everyone’s weakness; their confidence, their looks..."

He stumbled, green eyes dimming slightly.  "Their feelings..."

They returned to her grinning face, once more enraged.  "And you pick at it and PICK AT IT.  Until there's nothing LEFT!"

This time he tackled her headlong, sending them both through the window and out into the back courtyard of the school.  She landed with a yelp into the grass, having underestimated what strength he had left, but he had still used up what he DID have, sending him tumbling a good bit away from her.  He sat up with a groan.

He turned, looking over at her as she stood.  "And you...  You fill our heads with... lies..."

That last part, didn't come out as sure as he would have liked...

"WAS IT A LIE??"

Spectra raised her hands above her head, eyes burning scarlet.  "WAS IT?!!" she shrieked.

In a twisting storm of green and black fire, her entire body transformed into a dark, black silhouette, ragged with flames and glowing crimson eyes.  She lunged at Danny, claws digging into his torso as she slammed him into the wall.  "Did I call you a whore? No, YOU DID~!" she screamed gleefully at him.  "You said that you'd sell your heart, body, and soul for a sugar daddy twenty years older than you and GUESS WHAT?!  I BELIEVE IT!  Because there's nothing of worth in you otherwise!!  You don't even know what you are outside from a whore!  Not a boy, not a ghost!  How else would ANYBODY CARE ABOUT FREAK LIKE YOU?!"

"N-no!  No you're wrong!"

//Is she?//

Danny struggled in her grasp, but his body was too weak to fight her off.  Her words cut right to his heart, and he hurt all the more...  Slowly, his eyes began to dull again under her influence.  He grew paler and paler as she fed off his misery, head lolling to the side.

"You.... You're wrong.... You have to be.... You--"

There was a blinding flash of fuchsia light, and a sound like thunder.  KA-POW!!

CRASH!!!

Suddenly, the weight of Spectra was off of him.  Danny collapsed to the ground, panting, barely managing to look up at his savior.  His eyes regained some of their life and spark as he gasped, body trembling ever so slightly from mixed emotions.

"V-Vlad!"

"This is the ghost that fed you lies about me, yes?" Vlad hissed.  His red eyes burned like fire.  Rage surrounded him in black streams.  He was barely recognizable -- Vlad Plasmius, consumed by wrath -- as he gaze down at Spectra like a cockroach he was about to squash.  "Yes... this is HER..."

Spectra writhed at the force of the strike.  "AAAH... how DARE you!!  Do you know who I -- GUK!"

Before she could even finish her sentence, Vlad had her by the throat and hoisting her aloft... slowly floating them both off the ground.  Spectra choked and writhed, tail whipping in an effort to escape, all in vain.  "Do YOU know who I AM?" the dark-haired ghost murmured.  "You don't remember me, do you...?"

The woman spat at him and wriggled, claws digging into his wrist.  "Fine, I'll refresh your memory," Vlad hissed.  "Hospital.  Wisconsin.  Nineteen years ago.  You looked great in a nurse's uniform, but your patients always gave up and passed... and with ME, my 'condition'…

“...You had more misery than YOU KNEW WHAT TO DO WITH."

Danny gasped.  Hospital?  Nineteen YEARS AGO??  She... She had been the one who kept him there an extra year?!  The reason Vlad had suffered depression until he managed to get out?  Danny felt more anger boil in his heart, and he growled, wanting to go up there and join Vlad in kicking her butt!

He slowly stood, some strength coming back to him--!

//Whore!  Kept boy!  Foolish, stupid, naive little CHILD!!//

He fell back to his knees, eyes closed as he tried to block out the last of Spectra's influence.  It seemed she had gotten her claws in deep enough to still feed off of him in close proximity....

Vlad's burning eyes flicked to Danny, seeing his struggle, then went back to Spectra.  "You won't prey off the insecurities of another young man who is in a situation he can't help," he declared -- dark and calm.

A clone appeared beside them.  "I won't let you," both Vlads said.

"Not now," hissed a third Vlad.

"NOT EVER," growled the fourth.

Spectra's eyes widened suddenly.  "No...!" she whispered.  "YOU were that -?!"

The four half-ghosts let out a furious yell -- chilling in synch -- and all blasted her with searing ghost energy at once.  Her shrieks filled the air, writhing in pain and denial as the energy began to strip her youth and power, layer by layer, away from her being, falling far to the lawn below.  This place was far away from cameras, in the blind spot of two windows, and there was only one emergency exit door on the wall...

 

~*~

 

And just then, Jazz just happened to open the door to the outside.  

She gasped and stepped back, eyes wide at the blinding light surge above her.  "What the --?!" she yelped, shielding her eyes.

That's when she caught sight of Danny Phantom on the ground.

Jazz blinked at the ghost boy.  //Oh, it's him...!// she thought to herself.  //I've never seen him this close before...//

 

~*~

 

Danny struggled to stand up but ended up falling back on his butt.  He sighed, just sitting there for a moment.  Slowly, one could visibly see the color returned to his face, body filling back out and eyes regaining their bright shine.  He still seemed shy, a little unsure, but he was certainly back on the road of recovery.  He looked up at Vlad who was still glaring at the space Spectra once occupied.  He smiled slightly at the over protective halfa.

There were still some insecure thoughts rattling in his brain about his feelings for Vlad, but now with Spectra gone he could finally think a little straighter.  Vlad would never use him, never treat him like a whore or a kept boy.  And if he ever found out the truth, Danny knew he would never make him feel bad about his feelings...

With a sigh of relief at finally feeling himself again, he allowed himself to transform back into his human form.  He looked up at Vlad with big blue eyes, arms raised towards him to get his attention.

"Hey, come down here would ya?  My body’s not quite recovered from all of this..."

 

~*~

 

Jazz let out a quiet squeak of a gasp and ducked back in through the door.  Her eyes were impossibly wide.  

//D-DANNY'S THE GHOST BOY??//

 


	4. Chapter Four

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Have some feels after all that angst~

Vlad smiled, feeling some of his old self return as he floated down to Danny, boots touching the grass.  "I wouldn't expect you to be, badger," he replied, his red eyes happy that the boy looked much better already.  "I'm just glad you're alright."

Danny's smile fell a little as he remembered how he acted that morning.  "Oh my god Vlad, I'm so sorry I pushed you away like that... I wasn't... I wasn't thinking, I just..."

Danny shook his head, frowning deeper.  "How could I have let her get into my head like that?"

Vlad collected Danny into his arms, squeezing him reassuringly.  "It's how her powers work, Daniel," he murmured.  "I know first-hand.  Don't apologize, please..."

Danny shivered in his hold, eyes wide in shock.  Suddenly, all the emotions from the past few days crashed down on him.  Everything he had felt or thought, everything she said...

Everything she called him...

Tears began to fill Danny's eyes as a heartbroken keen escaped his lips.  He wrapped his arms around Vlad's neck as he cried, tears spilling onto the mans shoulders.

"Nnnnnnnnnn....!" he cried, voice broken on a little wail.  

The young man clung to Vlad like a lifeline, like he never wanted to let go.  Vlad held Danny tight, hand going to his hair.  It wasn't an advance, or anything romantic -- it was simply comfort, letting him know he understood, that he wasn't alone.  "It's okay..." the older ghost murmured.  "You're going to be all right..."

He squeezed him tightly, stroking his dark hair until Danny ran out of tears.  "Do you want to sleep at my house tonight?" he asked quietly.  "It will be quieter, I'm sure..."

Danny nodded, simply holding on to Vlad tighter.  "Yeah... Yeah I w-want to stay w-with you tonight..."

A shudder ran through Danny as he once again remembered all those names she said, what she had made him start to believe...

"Can we go?  Please?"

"Yes.  Can you fly?" Vlad asked, loosening his hold to look down at Danny in concern.

Danny thought about the flight he had taken here not five minutes before, but felt like it had been hours ago; he sighed, shaking his head.  "No, I don't think I have the strength yet... But nothing a good night sleep won't fix."

Danny hesitated, cheeks flushing shyly.  "Could you, um... Could you carry me?"

He glanced up at Vlad under his eyelashes, incredibly embarrassed.  "Please?"

Vlad chuckled.  "All right.  Just this once~"

He pulled Danny close to his side -- resisting the urge to carry him bridal style -- wrapped his arm around his waist, and took off into the clear blue sky, back towards his manor.  Things had been dicey there for a little while, but his boy was all right.  Everything was okay now...

~*~

"Really mom, I'm okay!  I'm just not feeling too hot and Vlad thinks I've got a 24 hour bug.  I'm just staying the night so he can help me study, so I don't miss anything from the school I've missed."

"Well, if you're sure, sweetie!" Maddie said on the other line, concerned.  "I hope you feel better soon!  I've already sent Vlad the recipe to that soup you like when you're sick, tell him to check his email."

Danny smiled, leaning against the kitchen counter at the manor.  He could hear Vlad click-clacking away at his laptop in the other room, a reassuring sound that he was nearby.  "Will do.  I'll see you guys tomorrow ok?  Love you!"

"Love you too, sweetie!"  

 

~*~

 

Maddie hung up and walked out of the kitchen, not seeing Jazz hang up the other phone in the hall.  Jazz suddenly went running past, putting on a jacket.  Maddie blinked in surprise.  "Where are you going, honey?"

"Out!  I'll be back for dinner!"

Maddie shrugged and headed down to the labs, hoping her husband hadn't caused too much of a mess while she had been on the phone.  

 

~*~

 

Back at the manor, Danny went into the living room to rejoin Vlad by the fire place.  He had dragged a bunch of pillows and blankets over by the fire, making himself a little nest.  He climbed in and snuggled up, sighing at the warmth.  He had been feeling cold for days now and the fire felt wonderful.

He looked up at Vlad, smiling.  "Mom says hi and that she sent a soup recipe for me,” he told the older halfa.  “Don't worry about it now, but it's good to keep on hand.  Nana's soup always helps me feel better when I'm sick."

Vlad nodded.  "I see... Tell me when you're hungry and I'll go print it out.  But…”

The older halfa took off his glasses, folding them up and tucking them in his front pocket.  “... In the meantime, Daniel..."

He hesitated -- then sighed and leaned forward, elbows on his knees as he gazed intently down at his pupil.  "This is a personal question, I understand that, and if you REALLY don't want to, you don't have to tell me.  But our relationship is about trust and being open with each other.  If you asked me something personal, I'd tell you.  You know that, right?"

Danny blinked, a little taken aback.  "Yeah, yeah I know that, Vlad."

He smiled, snuggling down into his little nest of blankets.  "I trust you, with my life even."

Vlad smiled a bit at that, then sobered.  "I'm glad... so I hope you'll be able to tell me this."

He placed a hand on the back of Danny's neck, gripping him with a gentle, but insistent hand.  "What did she tell you?" Vlad asked quietly, in a hushed voice.  "What did she make you think?  In order to keep this from happening again, we need to discuss it, put it to rest..."

Danny looked away, suddenly feeling uncomfortable.  He really didn't want to tell Vlad everything that happened, everything she said....

But he knew he needed to.  They needed to talk some of this out, Danny needed to prove he could trust Vlad, could talk to him.

Even if it hurt...

"She..."  

He gulped, eyes down.  "She called me... a whore."

"A ...?!" the older ghost started to snarl.

Then, Vlad blinked.  With that, the last puzzle piece fell into place, and the final picture was an ugly one.  He was familiar with Spectra's ways of manipulation, and Danny's situation -- his crush on Vlad, a much older man -- gave that piece of filth too much incredible insults to turn against him.  He sat back... covering his mouth and brows furrowed as he thought...

 

~*~

 

Outside the manor, Jazz scooted through the bushes, trying to keep under the cover of shadows in the waning sunlight.  She had suspicions, but she needed to confirm them.

Creeping up underneath a library window, Jazz leaned up, barely managing to peer through it into a cozy, fire-lit scene.‏

 

~*~

 

Vlad leaned forward again; his attention focused on Danny too much to notice the window.  "Daniel," he stated, gravely serious.  "Should we stop these lessons?"

"No!"

Danny tried to stand but tripped over his own nest of blankets.  He landed in the pile of pillows at Vlad's feet, looking up at him with imploring eyes.  "Please, don't send me away!  I don't care about what she said, I know she was wrong!  She twisted some things in my head, some of my feelings and tried to... tried to make them seem pointless, worthless!"

Danny looked away, eyes down.  "She told me I was worthless.  Called me useless, naive... So..."

Danny turned back to Vlad, a more determined look in his eyes, but also pleading.  "Don't send me away....  Don't prove her right..."

Vlad touched Danny's shoulder, squeezing it firmly.  "Daniel, that's not what I mean, I promise," he murmured, his voice deep, sad, but genuine.  "I don't want to send you away..."

He sighed, closing his eyes before opening them again -- staring into Danny's big blue eyes.  "But you have to understand the things some ghosts -- and some PEOPLE -- will say about us.  Our relationship, our situation, the fact that we're both half ghost..." he murmured, raising his brows at Danny.  "And whether they think it's true or not, they're going to insult you.  They're going to call you ugly names, call me horrible things, in order to get under your skin... and if you can't handle that, I don't want you to hurt just because I wanted to be your teacher..."

Vlad's brows furrowed earnestly.  "I care about you, Daniel," he said, putting both hands on Danny's shoulders.  "Now you know how painful it can be, what it feels like, to try and stay together like this.  Words hurt, I'm not saying they don't.  And it's not going to stop.  I only want the best for you, but YOU will have to make this decision, badger.  I'll go along with whatever you decide."

Danny frowned, looking away to think.  Sure, those words had hurt, but only because she had made HIM believe them.  Now, he knew they were wrong.  He wasn't a whore, or a kept boy, and Vlad wasn't looking to be his sugar daddy, or expecting anything from him...

Danny's face was set, determined.  He turned to look back at Vlad with bright blue eyes.  "It's worth it."

He place a hand on top of Vlad's, looking up into his eyes.  "I don't care what they say, because they're wrong.  They don't know anything!  And in the end...  Having you in my life, whatever relationship we have..."

Danny smiled, a sweet smile only for Vlad.  "It's worth it."

Vlad's grip hardened slightly.

His body leaned forward half an inch --!

Then, his inhibitions smashed down on him, stopping the advance.  A beat passed… and then the older halfa forced himself to release his hold on Danny.  It came slowly and unwillingly.  The way he smiled at him... those big blue eyes and the warm skin he could feel under the boy's shirt and blankets like they weren't even there.  In that moment, all he wanted to do was grab the back of his head and push their mouths together... kissing him... bearing down on him... stripping off his shirt and pants and running his hands over that smooth, young skin until Daniel was begging for him to take him right there on the FLOOR...

Suddenly, both Vlad and Danny's ghost senses went off, red and blue mist floating out from their open mouths.

Seizing on the distraction, Vlad stood up, forcing a smile at the boy still wrapped in blankets while trying to eradicate the thought of Danny pinned, naked and gasping, under his body.  "I'll take care of it," the man promised, transforming.

 

~*~

 

Jazz gasped and slid down the wall.  It was true!!

She quickly leapt from the bushes and ran for the gate, where her bike was waiting.  //They're both GHOSTS!!//

 

~*~

 

Vlad patted Danny's head reassuringly.  "Stay here, little badger.  When I get back, I'll print out that recipe," he said, turned intangible, and flew up through the high ceiling.‏

The only sound left was the crackle of the fireplace.

Danny stared after Vlad for a long moment, eyes wide and a slight blush on his cheeks.  He blinked slowly, burrowing down a little deeper into his nest by the fire.  For a moment there, it had felt like.... Like Vlad wanted to... To KISS him!  The way he had leaned closer, that look in his eyes....

Danny shook his head harshly.  No no no, that couldn't be right, he couldn't possibly--!

Could he?

Danny turned to stare at the fire, mind racing a hundred miles an hour.  Finally, he smiled softly.

//If he didn't, then fine, nothing changes, everything stays the same.  And if he did...//

Danny let his eyes drift shut as he slipped into a light nap, curled in front of the fire.  //Then maybe my feelings aren't so unrequited after all...//

And with that last, hopeful thought, he fell asleep, nothing but sweet, hopeful dreams filling his thoughts~

 


End file.
